WIGAN METROPOLITAN BOROUGH COUNCIL - SALARIES

In the year 2006/07 the council employed 183 staff paid salaries in excess of £50,000 p.a.In the year 2007/08 this rose to 220 staff paid in excess of £50,000 p.a. An increase of 37 people paid more than £50,000 p.a. Employee pension contributions are included A better pension scheme than most of you can even imagine.

Every £5000 is near enough £100/week, so £50,000 is about £1000/week or £4000/month; £100,000 is about £8000/month. £200,000 is about £16,000/month. At a reasonably good guess, I'd say a very large number of people in Wigan earn between £8-£16,000 a YEAR! That's somewhere between £160-£320/week or £640-£1280/month. Many people can only get part-time work. The numbers are based on a 50-week year, so are only an approximation.

These numbers were made up as follows:

£50,000 - £59,999
2006/07 126 2007/08 154
An increase of 28 people in that salary range (about £1,000-£1,200/week or £4,000-£4800/month).

£60,000 - £69,999
2006/07 32 2007/08 36
An increase of four people in that salary range ( about £1200-£1400/week or £4800-£5,600/month).

£70,000 - £79,999
2006/07 11 2007/08 14
An increase of three people in that salary range (about £1,400-£1,600/week or £5,600-£6,400/month).

£80,000 - £89,999
2006/07 3 2007/08 6
An increase of three people in that salary range (about £1600-£1800/week or £6400-£7200/month).

£90,000 - £99,999
2006/07 3 2007/08 1
A decrease of two people in that salary range (about £1800-£2000/week or £7200-£8000/month) .

Where did those two people go? I suspect up a band or two, not down (unless retired, moved to another council (I doubt if it would be to the private sector for these sorts of salaries and benefits packages) or (doubtfully) fired).

£100,000 - £109,999
2006/07 1 2007/08 2
An increase of one person in that salary range (about £2000-£2,200/week or £8000-£8,800/month).

£110,000 - £119,999
2006/07 1 2007/08 1
No change (about £2,200-£2400/week or £8,800-£9,600/month).

£120,000 - £129,999
2006/07 1 2007/08 0
A decrease of one person in this salary range (about £2,400-£2600/week or £9,600-£10,400/month).

I would add the same comment for this decrease as for the previous one

£130,000 - £139,999
2006/07 3 2007/08 0
A decrease of three people in this salary range (about £2,600-£2800/week or £10,400-£11,200/month.

Again, I would add that same comment. And coming up is where I suspect - but don't actually know for sure - five of those decreases in numbers went.

£140,000 - £149,999
2006/07 0 2007/08 2
An increase of two people in this salary range (about £2,800-£3,000/week or £11,200-£12,000/month).

£150,000 - £159,999
2006/07 0 2007/08 2
An increase of two people in this salary range (about £3000-£3200/week or £12,000-"£12,800/month).

Now we have to skip a £10,000 band and go into the £170,000+ range.

£170,000 - £179,999
2006/07 0 2007/08 1
An increase of one person in this salary range (about £3400-£3600/week or £13,600-£14,400/month).

Again we skip £10,000, and get to the top salary:

£190,000 - £199,999
2006/07 1 2007/8 1
No change (about £3,800-£4,000/week or £15,200-£16,000/month).

This last salary is, I should think, that of Ms Redfearn. I will not pass judgement on this or any others of the salary ranges listed here. I am not qualified to pass judgement other than to say that these sums of money are fabulous amounts in my experience of life. Please make comments in the comments section. All are welcome - we need to talk about this, especially as the gap between top and bottom of the pay range in this country is now at levels not seen since Victorian times, and social mobility has all but ground to a halt.

Now then, having said that, let me give my opinion on how this council is run, and note this is all subjective opinion only: I hear numerous complaints about the council - the council this, or the council not that. I don't really say much about those complaints as they seem to come mostly from people who have never been residents (residents - this is from a resident's point of view) under the jurisdiction of any other council. I have been resident in the jurisdiction of exactly ten other councils (two of them twice, and for years at a time), and I must say that Wigan is probably the best, friendliest, most informative and efficient council I've ever encountered (arguably Bucks County Council is up there with Wigan). My view may be coloured by having lived five years in Plymouth before coming back north to live - that was without a doubt, the opposite of my above description of Wigan - from a resident's point of view. The parks are pleasant, my bin is regularly emptied on a weekly basis, I get informed in advance of any changes in routine services, my opinion is asked on various matters, for example the ongoing consultation about Congestion Charging (I'll be voting against it unless by some miracle there are rapid improvement in public transport), the town centre is kept clean by real human beings using a brush and shovel, plenty of flowers are planted throughout the town centre and in the parks (I like flowers all over the place). All in all I'm quite content.

But the question is - and I can't answer it - are those salaries justified? I suspect that with the hard times that are coming - and they are - that if all those salaries were cut by 20% NOBODY WOULD RESIGN, and Wigan would operate just as it does now. The hard times and inevitable coming redundancies may make the council staff work even better, if only for fear of being on the next redundancy list, much as many people in the private sector have already experienced, and will no doubt be further experiencing in the near future. That, of course, is just an opinion. Please comment.

How much do binmen, street sweepers and park gardeners get paid? They all seem to do a good job. And almost any medical doctor would agree with me that sanitation workers contribute more to public health than does the medical profession ... if that doctor is being honest and actually understands what I just said - PUBLIC health, not the same as the health of any individual. It was changes to water supply and sewage systems that brought the scourge of typhoid to an end in this country, not advances in medicine, for example.

Note: yes, all these fabulous salaries are taxed, but so are the low salaries I mentioned at the beginning. It's also noticable that the bottom 10% of wage earners in this country pay about 37% of their earnings in tax, but the top 10% (over £50K p.a.), pay only 34%. On average.

That's the modern-day Labour party and government for you. Mind how you vote come general election time (maximum 19 months from now, unless a State of Emergency can be faked and elections called off. Probably indefinitely).

How can people on these sorts of salaries possibly comprehend what life is like for people living on benefits, or at or near minimum wage?

Comments, please - from BNP members and non-BNP members. Comments on this blog are open to all, and all opinions are welcome. Other than for using foul language, gratuitous insults or threats, nobody is ever censored.

CRIME,VANDALISM AND "RACISM" IN WIGAN

Every day we have instances of crime and petty vandalism, locally and nationally. Schools are rife with drugs and in the papers today calls are being made for police to be stationed in schools.
Last week the car of one of our members was stolen and wrecked, yet another instance of the mindless vandalism prevalent in our society.
In today's Observer is a report of football changing rooms being torched in Ince and so the toll goes on.
Local councillors find this vandalism "disgusting"and asks for a greater police presence.

Well I find the whole criminal justice system disgusting! with the low life who commit these crimes let off with a slap on the wrist if they are ever caught.

The answer is simple, severe punishments including the birch would at a "stroke" no pun intended, solve the problem.
This punishment is said to be barbaric, but the destruction of peoples lives and property is equally barbaric and such punishment would in most cases turn the offender's lives round and save them from a life of crime.
Additionally the birch would not need to be used often as the threat would deter others from criminality and save millions in prison costs.

So you Labour supporters, councillors, MPs and other do gooders the fault is yours, but I fear that as yet you are too thick to see it.

What you see as more important than the protection of peoples property and rights is "race crime" where a minor insult is considered serious enough to warrant a suspended jail sentence.
Why is this offense so important? Why is it an offense at all? I can be insulted and often have been. I didn't like it but never considered it to be criminal.
Why is a racial insult worse than any other? One can't help one's race but neither can one help being ugly, but an insult over ugliness is not a criminal offense.
Why is an insult against ethnics more serious than one against English people? Why are we not allowed to say we do not welcome these uninvited people in such numbers, and the changes they are bringing to our society?

It seems there is a not so hidden agenda to destroy our culture and society, which has served us well for a thousand years, instigated by those who we trusted to represent us.
AGAIN WHY?

WHY ARE WE FORCED TO PAY FOR PEOPLE LIKE ELLIOT BROWN our "Hate crime coordinator"

WE WERE NEVER ASKED.

The only solution and hope for our country is to rid ourselves of the traitorous politicians as soon as possible, and--

FOR ENGLAND'S SAKE,

VOTE BNP, before the pot boils over and we have a Balkan like situation here.

GREAT JULY MEETING

Last Thursday we held our usual monthly meeting of our Wigan group. It was in my opinion a very successful meeting with a good attendance and possibly 3 new members signing up.
What distinguishes our meetings from the meetings of other parties is the social aspect with people staying long after the political part of the meeting has finished. These occasions are therapeutic in that one feels invigorated after especially after meeting so many solid decent people from all walks of life who are united in the love of our country and people.
A pleasing aspect of late is the increasing numbers of people attending indicating a growing support for our position and a realisation that our party speaks for "people like them". We have some politics (we after all are a political party) and generally socialise afterwards. All in all enjoyable evenings in a convivial atmosphere.
That is not to say the political speeches are unimportant. They are a vital part of any political meeting. In this aspect we are fortunate in having some of the best speakers in politics with serious presentations given in a "fun" way which often has the audience asking for more, a far cry from the turgid offerings of other parties.

Last week we had Paul Rimmer who always informs and amuses as he gives his talks "from the heart" and who can draw on a wealth of experience of inner city life in Liverpool and London and the effects of the "enrichment" of those two great cities.
A DVD has been made of Paul's speech which I will forward to anyone if you phone the number on the top of this blog.

Thanks to all who attended but I'm sure you don't need my thanks as you all seemed to enjoy it.
Look forward to seeing you next month or perhaps before at the RWB.

A CALL FOR INFORMATION

I live in the southern third of Wigan West. This is the area - or one of the areas - where Wigan MBC are offloading lots of immigrants.

It's Labour opinion that this enriches us all. Many of us disagree - but whatever, Labour seem to think it, or they at least say it.

Now then, Neil Turner, our Wigan MP lives around here - not far from me actually - right here where all the enrichment is being carried out.

I'm not fully confident about what follows, but I've been told it separately by two different people, so I'm putting out a call for confirmation or denial.

One of his near neighbours, and a different woman who is a near neighbour of mine, have both told me that Neil Turner is moving out and going to live elsewhere.

If that is so then it just about sums up everything we in the BNP - and many not in the BNP - think about all those in favour of enrichment: i.e. that they are in favour of it only so long as it's not happening where they and their families live. It's happening where Mr. Turner lives so he's moving out; he loads the enrichment onto us, but doesn't like it for himself even though he and his kind tell us it's good for us. And no doubt good for Wigan too, eh?

Now then: can anyone confirm or deny for me that he actually is moving out? I would be grateful for information. Say what you think, or what you know, in the comments. If he actually is moving out then I have a great deal more to say on this topic.

INCOMPETENCE,GREED AND VINDICTIVENES CAUSING FUEL PRICE RISES

Electricity and gas prices are set to rise by 60% while road fuel is at record levels. Gordon Brown, our "prudent "prime minister scurries round Arab countries asking them to cut oil prices and blames world conditions.
This fuel crisis could and should have been forseen, and our troubles have been caused by the short sighted policies of both Labour and Tory administrations with added vindictiveness by the latter.

When Noth Sea oil and gas was discovered it caused the pound to rise to such an extent that our industry could not compete abroad causing us to lose much of our manufacturing base.
After Thatcher beat the miners the Tories put the boot in them saying they would not be held to ransom again. They did this by building gas power stations run on North Sea gas. Unfortunately in a particularly vindictive move they shut many profitable mines and others which although they did not pay at the time held vast reserves of coal, and which could have been mothballed until the price of coal went up as it has done now.

Labour, supposedly the party of the miners shut most of the other pits including the giant Selby complex, only opened 20 years previously and locally the Bickershaw/Golborne compex. To be politically correct and in order "to cut carbon emissions" they said that gas was the thing for the future.
Why were these pits not mothballed? Hundred of millions of tons have been steriised by subsequent developement and we are now dependant on countries such as Russia for much of our coal.

At the same time they sold gas and oil cheaply to Europe which helped plug the balance of payments deficit resulting from the demise of our manufacturing industry and increasing imports.
They could not see that this was a wasting asset and would run out at a time when global prices were rising.
Meanwhile a false sense of prosperity was created on the back of cheap credit and Chinese imports and the increased government revenues squandered.
Now the chancellor has no savings to cushion the blow that they in part have created and we are dependent on Russia for much of our gas and coal.
How very secure. They don't need to attack us, just turn off the tap. Even during the war we could guarantee power and gas from our own resources.

Governments Tory and Labour should have seen this coming years ago and refrained from selling our gas and oil at knock down prices and saved it for times of shortage. Similarly they should not have sterilised our coal.
If the treasury had saved rather than wasted our taxes when times were good they would have been able to reduce them now times are hard.

Is it incompetence or greed for power or both? I think both.

Gordon Brown as a "son of the manse" should have remembered his Bible.
The seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine in Egypt and also the parable of the prodigal son.
Only this time there is no happy ending as we have no fatted calf--we ate it last year.

The other parties were happy to govern for the short term even if that meant destroying our assets, AND NOW WE ARE PAYING THE PRICE.

THE BNP WOULD ALWAYS THINK OF THE LONG TERM IN PRESERVING OUR NATURAL RESOURCES AND JOBS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS.

JULY MEETING

Here is the back page of the bulletin for the Wigan group meeting to be held next Thursday at 8 pm at the usual venue.
The speaker will be Paul Rimmer who is well worth hearing for his take on the problems we face and our future.
I hope to see as many as possible there.

THE STUPIDITY OF BROWN AND MILLIBAND

Gordon Brown and his puppet Milliband are "shocked and disappointed" that Russia and China have not backed sanctions against Zimbabwe.
Did bungling Brown and meddlesome Milliband really think China and Russia would back the proposals ? (I notice when white farmers were being murdered they did not show any concern).
Russia has trouble with states such as Chechnya and does not want outside interference in these regions and is thus hardly likely to be in favour of interference elsewhere.
China is hardly a democracy so they are not going to be in favour of any attempt to force democracy on other countries especially after the trouble in Tibet. Also they are investing millions in Zimbabwe and other failing African states to secure access to the rich mineral wealth of Africa. If they secure these vital raw materials they don't care what the regimes in Africa do.
Meanwhile we are becoming denied business opportunities in Africa by our meddlesome attitudes to governance in Africa.
Let's face it, all African states are failed states and if we want access to minerals we should mind our own business, keep out of African politics, and deal with the despots as China does. Giving aid which only ends up in dictator's Swiss bank accounts does no good and the African people still hate us.
Much better for all concerned is for us to put our money into mineral exploitation in Africa. This would give some local employment and improve infrastructure but most importantly secure our supplies before China has the monopoly. But then none in our government has any business sense and are too short sighted to see.
We are losing our future trying to be the world's policeman while the Chinese and Russian governments are doing what they should do--looking after the interests of their own country.
Our government should likewise, do what it is supposed to do --look after our interests at home and abroad.

Why does this matter to the people of Wigan? Because if the British government continues on its meddlesome path,
OUR CHILDREN WILL BE AMONGST THE WORLD'S POOR IN FUTURE
That's why we need the BNP to stop these stupid policies and thus prevent future poverty here, for when disaster strikes--

NO ONE WILL HELP US!